It's an essential part of keeping a tidy and fresh existence: Soap. Hands, clothes, dishes... they all need something to keep away the grime and germy germs (I have small children; I'm allowed to say germy germs). If you are anything like me and find yourself cursing money spent on soap and detergents when it could be going toward things that are way more fun than cleaning supplies, then you might appreciate these DIY soap recipes.If my laundry detergent were as beautifully displayed as the above DIY concoction by Yellow Brick Home, I might do it more often. She uses three ingredients in her homemade laundry detergent.

This is the one I'm gearing up to use since my washer requires liquid detergent (I didn't know it mattered, but... whatever). My girls have very, very sensitive skin and we've tried all the special laundry detergents in the city. I'm hoping by going the DIY route we can save a little money and keep their skin healthy. This recipe (using the same ingredients from the dry recipe, just different directions) comes from I'm A Mom, Not A Professional. I'll let you know how it goes!

How about those hands? Here's a handmade bar soap from Ruffled Blog that includes a pretty picture! The boutique-style soap will make you feel clean and chic, I'm sure!

Washing your hands is the single most effective way to prevent the spread of those germy germs, and I know we go through it fast at our house. Instead of staring at a sorry-looking bar of soap, you can always turn it into liquid hand soap by using the instructions at Savvy Housekeeping.

It seems as though people are preferring those foaming hand soaps lately, since I guess people associate suds and foam with squeaky clean. My only complaint is that they run out way faster than the non-foaming soaps. Why not make your own to save on all those refills? The recipe for this foaming hand soap is at Full of Great Ideas.

Let's not forget the dishes! Here's a recipe from Being Creative to Keep My Sanity that uses a lot of the same ingredients from the laundry detergent recipe. She makes it clear that without Lemi-Shine, your dishes will be cloudy. Side note: I've been using that blessed little yellow bottle for a while now; our hard water did a number on my wonderful utensils, and Lemi-Shine saved them. I strongly recommend it!

I guess the only downside to all of this is that I am still doing the dishes and laundry... that's a DIY I don't want to do!

Comments

It seems the argument for these DIY projects is always cost vs. time investment. Of course, you almost always save money doing it yourself, with the added benefit of not having all the extra junk manufacturers add to products, most DIY cleaning solutions are completely environmentally friendly. That's just how I like it! And that's how we do it at our <a href=" http://www.housecleaningservicephoenix.com”rel="nofollow">Phoenix house cleaning</a> service - Green and environmentally friendly.

I have tried this & it works. I really save because I don't have to buy dishwasher soap anymore. I also make my own laundry soap & believe me, my clothes are cleaner than any other major brand soap can get them.

I use the above Ingredients except I use Zote soap instead of the Fels Naptha. I occasionallly throw in a bar of Dr. Bronner's soap for different scents. I am a big fan of the Citrus Orange Bar. I would assume you could use the liquid also, although I haven't tried that yet. I absolutely LOVE making my own detergent.

I have also been using the homemade laundry soap listed above for a couple of months now. I have 4 kids and we live in the desert, so we have dirty, dusty clothes and I have had only great results with this laundry detergent! I have shared my recipe with my sisters, mother, and friends. We love it! I didn't know about the petro-chemical in Fels-Naptha and I want to look into that. Also, I read from another site, that you can use Distilled White Vinegar as your fabric softner. I have been doing this for a couple of months now. In my washer there is a place to add fabric softner, so I add a tiny bit of liquid Downy (for the smell) and then vinegar and a little water. The solution is mostly vinegar. It has worked GREAT! I love not having all those chemicals on my family's clothing!

I've made the homemade laundry soap but I prefer using one bar of Ivory soap instead of the Fels-Naptha because the Fels has a petro-chemical in it. Plus, the Ivory grates much easier than the Fels. You can also add several drops of your own favorite essential oil such as lavender or lemon to not only give it a lovely, natural scent but add to the cleaning potential as well!

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